Las Vegas Is #1 Destination For Memorial Day 2012
Priceline.com celebrates 10 years of publishing its Top 50 Memorial Day Destinations report

NORWALK, Conn., May 15, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Las Vegas's North Strip area is the top destination for travelers over Memorial Day 2012, according priceline.com's (Nasdaq: PCLN) annual survey of the Top 50 destinations for the holiday that traditionally kicks off the summer travel season. In second place on this year's list is Chicago's tony North Michigan Avenue.

Priceline.com has been publishing its annual Memorial Day list for a decade, making it one of the longest running prognosticators of travel trends. The list is based on actual hotel room booking requests made by priceline.com Name Your Own Price® hotel service customers for the upcoming holiday period. Because the survey is based on booking requests, and not on consumer preference polls or votes, priceline.com believes its annual survey is one of the more accurate predictors of holiday travel trends.

The 2012 Top 50 destinations highlight leisure travelers' budget sensitivities going into the summer season. "Average summer airfares are the highest we've seen in a decade," said priceline.com's in-house Travel Ekspert Brian Ek. "So it's not surprising to see travelers opting for the more affordable destinations where average summer airfares are down versus last year. For example, the average Las Vegas summer airfare is down 3.3%, while Chicago is down 4.4%, New York's JFK is down 3.4%, and San Francisco is down 3.4%."

International travel for Memorial Day 2012 was down compared to last year, with Paris being the only overseas destination to make the list. Ironically, after experiencing a travel boost following last year's Royal Wedding, and with the Olympics coming up in July, London failed to crack this year's top 50.

Ek reminded Memorial Day air travelers to be especially mindful of airline baggage fees. "Baggage fees this year can be as much as $100 each way," he said. "When comparing airlines, always factor in your baggage and calculate the total price for the fare plus bags. Know your airline's baggage restrictions and pack as lightly as possible."

With less than two weeks to go before Memorial Day, there's still plenty of time to get a deal on an airline ticket, hotel room, vacation package, rental car or even a cruise by visiting http://www.priceline.com. For special travel bargains, visit PriceBreakers http://www.priceline.com/pricebreakers, priceline.com's last-minute deals service, which is updated daily. Travelers who choose priceline.com's Name Your Own Price® option can save up to 60% on hotels, 40% on airline tickets and 40% on rental cars compared to published fares and rates.

About The Priceline GroupThe Priceline Group (Nasdaq: PCLN) is a leader in global online hotel reservations, with over 235,000 participating hotels worldwide. The Group is composed of four primary brands – Booking.com, priceline.com, Agoda.com and Rentalcars.com – and several ancillary brands. The Priceline Group provides online travel services in over 175 countries in Europe, North America, South America, the Asia-Pacific region, the Middle East and Africa.

Booking.com is the number one online hotel reservation service in the world, offering over 205,000 hotels (as of May 9, 2012), and is available in 41 languages. More recent hotel counts are available on the Booking.com website. Priceline.com gives leisure travelers multiple ways to save on their airline tickets, hotel rooms, rental cars, vacation packages and cruises. In addition to getting compelling published prices, travelers can take advantage of priceline.com's famous Name Your Own Price® service, which can deliver the lowest prices available. Agoda.com is an Asia-based online hotel reservation service that is available in 37 languages. Rentalcars.com is a multinational car hire service, offering its reservation services in over 4,000 locations. Customer support is provided in 38 languages.